Taking Two Steps Forward
by Takei Hisa
Summary: "Maybe... I'm not content with just being by your side anymore."-Merida "Maybe...I'm going to open my eyes to a different possibility."-Hiccup -HiccupXMerida Oneshot!


_"They were two differing personalities altogether.  
One was fiery, spicy, and loved disobeying the norm.  
The other just wanted to try to be the norm. _

_One had a mischievous grin.  
The other had a wry, gentle lopsided smile._

_One simply was expressive and sharp.  
The other was a little less than talkative and blockheaded at times. _

_One accepted her feelings faster.  
The other attempted denying his"_

Merida tugged her royal attire over her face, feeling utter disgust at the three males before her. Were her parents seriously expecting her to pick any of them? She rolled her eyes in contempt when one of her supposed suitors obnoxiously shot an arrow, only having it land millimetres away from the Bull's eye. She sighed. None of the suitors caught her eye. Merida scratched her back ungracefully, since the tight-fitting regal robes itched like mad. There had to be a way out of this…right?

An idea then struck her. And it struck her hard.

"I'm Merida, first born of…" she announced loud and proud. Unbeknownst to her, a rather timid, milky-brown haired male had been observing her silently from where she stood. His eyes widened at her brave outburst. She couldn't be serious! She was a princess! Her reputation was at stake! Knowing all these facts fully well, said male still kept his eyes trained onto the unfolding scene, watching as she let the last arrow leave her fingertips, eyes brimming with determination and confidence. She knew what she was doing. He could only gape in amazement as her arrow sliced through the bull's eye with perfect accuracy and precision.

Merida turned to glare at her mother after her last arrow had been fired. Queen Elinor's face was engraved with wrinkles of rage. Her nostrils flared, which was an obvious sign of her angered mood. This wasn't going to end well later in the night. However, Elinor knew that the grand feast had to be settled before any of their parental-child issues could be settled. So hold back her temper she did.

The grand dinner was absolutely glorious. King Fergus was entertaining guests, and the event was in full swing. Loud cheers and glugs from drinking pint after pint of reeking alcohol were heard, and gruesome grunts from arm-wrestling matches stained the atmosphere. Merida walked around, occasionally attending to some guests, and filling her stomach at the same time. After topping her plate of food with some extra glazed ribs, she settled down to dig in. Feeling an awkward gaze upon her, she spun around, abruptly meeting the hazel eyes of a freckled boy.

It had just been a few minutes—no, in fact, it had been seconds. However, those few seconds had been enough to send electrifying pulses through Merida. Acting upon her instincts, she sent him a warm smile, since it was—well, polite to do so—and also because she felt it was right. The male's right corner of his lip simply tilted upwards, in a boyish, half-smile and he waved. It was so simple. Yet, it had been so enchanting for Merida.

Hiccup rushed to a deserted area of the room, panting to catch his breath. He ran his trained fingers through his soft locks of mocha-coloured hair, struggling to ignore his erratic heartbeat and his clammy hands. What was up with that princess? Merida—right? Yeah. What was up with that flame-haired female? There had to be something possessing her. Well. That was Hiccup's conclusion anyway. There was no way she could look so vulnerable and defenceless after putting on such a defying act earlier on. And what was he thinking? Waving to her?! He shook his head, trying to clear his train of thought. Let's just say it crashed when he felt a petite hand tap his back.

"Hi, I'm Merida."  
"AHH!"

That had been their first meeting, three years ago. Merida sat by the fast-flowing river with Hiccup, eagerly admiring all the fishes that gracefully swam by—Ahem, Merida was admiring the fishes. Hiccup was just staring off into space. Merida grazed the reflecting surface of the clear river, embracing the coolness she felt upon her fingers. Hiccup and Merida became close friends after their first encounter. Merida had always been the one to bring out the light-hearted, jovial side of Hiccup, and Hiccup could always break Merida's thick-headedness and her stubborn attitude—So it was like having acid and alkaline together, they'd cancel all their negative traits out.

Then again, maybe you couldn't call it a friendship. Not when Merida regarded Hiccup a lot more than that. Merida was indeed very expressive with how she felt towards matters, but she had been content with just having Hiccup as her companion. Just being able to tease him, laugh with him, or to just sit by the river and have mutual, comfortable silence like this was already more than enough for her. She already felt gratitude towards Hiccup for always being there for her. What more could she ask for? She sighed inwardly, shaking off the desire to just bask in self-pity for once.

Merida plunged her hand into the crystal-like water, only to yank out a wiggling, gasping fish—specifically salmon. She traced the scales of the salmon, admiring the way it gleamed in the evening light. Well wasn't she sadistic…"Salmon actually tastes pretty good." Hiccup remarked, peering at the wriggling salmon she held tightly in her palm. Merida halted, before thrusting the live fish in front of him. She grinned mischievously, before ordering, "Eat it."

Hiccup's eyes widened to the size of flying saucers. He coughed violently into his fist, "Must I?" She vigorously nodded, like how a child would. "Yes!" she insisted, holding out the slimy fish even closer to his face. Hiccup sighed and decided to give in to her whims. He extricated the abused fish from her iron grip. He shut his eyes in revolt. "Ugh…" he mumbled, before taking a bite out of the gross salmon. "Happy now?" He questioned, in between hasty chews, before forcefully swallowing it down his throat. He was never going to comment on how fish tasted like again.

Merida leaped with glee, hopping around like a bunny; her flaming curls flying everywhere without restraint. She clapped her hands at Hiccup's great achievement, eyes sparkling with amusement at having her fancies being catered to by him. This was very rare, and Merida was going to make the most out of it. The mature, sometimes stoic Hiccup would usually brush off her childish demands, or sometimes wait for the novelty of her order to wear off. This happened pretty often, so she was surprised when the young lad actually responded.

Hiccup would have gone back to ignoring Merida like he had been before, if only she had not given him such an innocent expression of happiness. Her eyes were practically pools of excitement, and Hiccup couldn't stand this about Merida. He couldn't stand how she made him unconsciously nervous, or how she got his thoughts all jammed up and whizzing all about when she came about. This was irritating. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. She was back to animatedly gushing about the fishes. Apparently she saw trout too. "Eh." He muttered drily.

Unfortunately, the other side of the river happened to pique Merida's interest. It was uncharted territory after all. Merida's curiosity grew greater by the very minute. What was on the other side of the river? Was there magic? Would there be an adventure awaiting her? She slipped off her pointy shoes, and lifted the hem of her ankle-length, navy blue gown. In a hurry, she hopped across the stepping stones to the other side, leaving Hiccup behind to supposedly daydream about who-knows-what. Then, she slipped.

Hiccup's floating thoughts were cut off rudely by a loud splash. He directed his attention to the cause of the annoyance. He was beyond shocked to see the bright-eyed girl drenched from head to toe. She was drifting lazily in the river, enjoying the occasional breeze, apparently not seeming to realize how dangerous it was. Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose. "Hey! What are you doing?!" Merida opened her shut eyes, pondering over something before snapping her fingers. "I wanted to get to the other side…and I guess I fell." She trailed off, scratching her neck, looking slightly embarrassed.

Merida giggled at how stupid she looked and felt. Expecting Hiccup to call her back to shore, she readied herself to swim back. What exceeded her expectations was the fact that he started to cross the river as well. He took cautious step by cautious step, making sure not to slip up and end up a wet mess like Merida. She paused, before understanding what he had been doing. She bolted to the other side of the river, mentally laughing at how idiotic this whole scenario was. Merida soon studied Hiccup's movements, how he seemed so elegant, treading across with such grace.

Hiccup turned to Merida, giving her the same wry smile he gave her from their first encounter. She almost choked up, but managed to shoot a smile back. As Hiccup continued with his quest to cross the river, Merida wistfully gazed at the ground, tucking her dripping hair behind her ear, before smiling at herself for not noticing it sooner. Maybe she wasn't content with just staying as bosom friends after all.

Hiccup made sure his two heels were firmly on land before glancing upwards to take in his surroundings. To his complete surprise and contentment, by glancing up, his lips met another pair. Hiccup swore his heartbeat stopped. It was beyond frantic. Her lips were soft, yet the kiss was...confident. It was certain, as if she were binding herself to him. It was a promise. She was sure of her feelings. It was as if she was questioning whether he was sure of his own.

Merida pulled back first, beaming brightly at Hiccup. She punched him in the shoulder. "Tag! You're it! Catch me if you can!" she boisterously yelled, before sprinting off, only taking a split second to look back at the star struck Hiccup.

At that moment, there had been no need for any explanation whatsoever. Everything Merida had to say had been transmitted to Hiccup with that one kiss. That one promise. Hiccup broke into a smile. Yeah. "I think I got it," He uttered to himself, before speeding towards the playful other.  
"You better pray your legs can carry you far!"

_No more suppressing.  
No more denying._

I'll say it out loud,  
I'll accept this fact.  
I love you.


End file.
